Rotary-table casting apparatus with water-cooled molds



March 23, 1954 s. N. LUTZ ROTARY-TABLE CASTING APPARATUS WITHWATER-COOLED MOLDS 3 Sheets-$heet 1 Filed July 9, 1951 FIELi- March 23,1954 s, LUTZ 2,672,661

ROTARY-TABLE CASTING APPARATUS WITH WATER-COOLED MOLDS Filed July 9,1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 i/j Mia/wag March 23, 1954 s, N, LUTZ 2,672,661

ROTARY-TABLE CASTING APPARATUS WITH WATER-COOLED MOLDS Filed July 9,1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 F IELZI- 59 if 5% 12 I 52. 7 M 4 4 i z y v 524 452a 25 I 25 26 L19 I W F "5-4.

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Patented Mar. 23, 1954 ROTARY TABLE CASTING APPARATUS WITH WATER- COOLEDMOLDS Stanley N. Lutz',-Lor'ain, States Steel Corporati Jersey Ohio;assignor' to United on, a corporation. of: New

Application J uly 9,]1951, Serial No..23'5,826"

L Claim. 1

This invention relates to: apparatus for supporting and conveying'aseries of molds past a pouring station whereby'metal castings maybeproduced rapidly and efficiently.

Many types of rotary-table casting apparatus have been proposedheretofore. It is the object of my invention to improve generally onsuch known apparatus and, in: particular; to provide apparatusparticularly adapted for casting articles which. may'bemade in one-pieceperma nent metal molds. Further objects are-toprovide" suitable watercooling'for such molds and mountings therefor which will facilitatedump-- ing. of the castings when cooled. Other more specific objects ofthe invention will become apparent hereinafter.

In a pref'erredembodiment' of'the invention, I providea rotary'table orhorizontal wheel in the form. of a spider-likeskeleton having aplurality of 'armsradiatingfrom a central hub. The'hub iszjjournaled ona vertical tubular spindle. Moldcarrying buckets spacedcircumierentiall'y' of the table have trunnions pivoted in bearingscarried by the arms, the common axisof'the bearings'of each bucket lyinggenerally tangentially of the table; A mold. is removably secured ineach bucket by a flangewhich serves as a" cover; and inlet" and outletconnections for cooling water are provided for'each bucket. Water issupplied to the inlet connections from a main extending through thespindle. The hub has a collector basinfor receiving water" dischargedfrom the outlet connections. 1

A- complete understanding of' the invention maybe obtained'iromthe'iollowing detailed description' and-explanation which refer to theaccompanying drawings illustrating" thepresent preferred embodiment. In"the drawings,

Figure 1' is a plan view ofmy improved casting apparatus;

Figure 2 is a cross-section thereof taken along theplaneofline II--II ofFigure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-section to enlarged scale through one of thebuckets,taken along the plane of line IIIIII of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a partial section through one of the buckets takenalongtheplane of line IV-IV of Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is apartial side elevation of one of the buckets showing aportionin section taken along the plane of line V-V of Figure 3.

Referring'nowin detail to the drawings and, for the present, to Figures1 and'2, a base plate I having a centralopening' H therein, .is securedto'rafound-ation. l2. S pacedZwehplates lit disposed radially about theopening I I support a vertical hollow spindle or post bottom ring' I 4*and a sleeve M wardly therefrom. A horizontal indicated generally at Mincluding a extending up-- is composed of a central hub l6 and arms I!radiating therefrom; The hub is journaled on the spindle by an upperthrust-and-radial bearing l8 and a lower radial bearing 59. The armsreston a flange l6 -adja-- cent the bottom of the hub; are braced bygussets 21) welded thereto and to the hub, andare tied togetherintermediate their ends by bars" The table is drivenatlow speed (from toI R. P: M.) by a variable-speed motor (not shown) through areductiongear 22 having a vertical low-speed output shaft onwhich is'secured apinion 23". The pinion meshes'with a; gear 24' secured to the hub l6'at'the lower end thereof.

Cross bars 25 at the'ends of arms I! carry a bearing 26 at each end; Ineach pair of bearings'including one on each of two adjacent cross bars;a bucket Z'I'isjournaled by means of trunnicns 28 thereon (see-Figure3)'. As shown in Figure 1, the arrangement of the pairs of bearingssupporting each of the several buckets is such that the latter aretiltable about horizontal axes generally tangential to the table I5. Thet'runnions are located at a level such that the buckets normally hangvertical in the bearings; Each bucket has a handle 29 by which it may betilted outwardly at the top until it'- is substantially' inverted; A lug30 is fixed to one of the bearings of each bucket forcooperation with aradial lug 3| secured to the latter (see Figures 3 and 5) thus providinga stop limiting the re'- turn swingof' the bucket after' tilting;

Each bucket contains a: one-piece metal mold The mold includes acavityforming portion 32 a stepped portion 32 and" a flange-32 which rests onthe rim of the bucket and serves as a covertherefor. The'under-sid'e ofthe flange has a groove for a sealing gasketwhich seats on the bucket"rim: The mold is removably secured. to the bucket bybolts' extendingthrough holes in" flange 32' and through lugs 3 projecting ra- 'diailyf'romthebucket. A" sand core35 including a pouring basin 35 isfittedinto' eachmold be flarepouring molten metal therein. The basinfitssnugly in: the stepped portion of: the mold. The cavity in themolds: may be: of any desired shape:v shown is for' the. production ofplugs usedin. rolling seamless-tubes.

A- guidetube 36-- is secured to each' bucket by a web. plate: 3%. AU--shaped plunger or yoke 3.1: has. a long. leg. reciprocablethroughthe. are, a short leg adapted to exert a downward" thrust wheelor table on the core and a horizontal portion connecting the two legs. Aspring 38 on the long leg of the plunger is compressed between a washerthereon and the upper end of the tube and constantly urges the plungerdownwardly. An expendable spacer block 39 is disposed between the shortleg of the plunger and the core to prevent splashed metal from freezingon the plunger and interfering with removal of the casting from themold. The plunger is turned to a position in which the short leg is outof alinement with the mold when a core is being placed therein.

In order to insure quick freezing of the molten metal poured into themolds and keep the latter at a safe temperature, I provide means forcirculating cooling water through the buckets 21. A supply pipe 40extends below ring 14* and up wardly through spindle M. A pipe ring orannulus 4! above hub I6 is connected to pipe 40 by a hose 42 and hasconnections 43 extending to inlet pipes 44 inserted through one of thetrunnions 2B of each bucket. Each connection 43 includes a control valve45 and a swivel 46 at the joint with the inlet pipe. The other trunnionof each bucket has an outlet pipe 41 inserted therethrough and connectedby a swivel 48 to an outlet pipe as. Pipes 49 have downturned nozzles 59at their inner ends which discharge into a collector basin secured ontop of hub 16 and having a bottom outlet fitting in the upper end ofspindle M. A drain pipe 52 connected to the bottom ring of the spindleextends through a void in foundation [2 to the sewer. The elevation andvisibility of the nozzles 50 and the discharge jets therefrom make itpossible for the operator constantly to verify the maintenance ofcontinued circulation of cooling water through each bucket and to leaveout of service any bucket through which circulation may be reduced bypartial stoppage of its supply pipe or maladjustment of its controlvalve, for example, until the necessary corrective measures may betaken.

The apparatus is prepared for operation by bolting a set of molds 32 ofthe desired size in buckets 21. spection is made to detect leaks. Theentering water is preferably held at about 110 F. since a lowertemperature may permit condensation of atmospheric moisture in themolds. Cores 35 of the proper size are then placed in the molds and heldby means of plungers 31' and wood blocks 39. Molten metal is then pouredinto the molds, usually by two operators from a. small ladle. Thepouring operation is the slowest part of the proccss and therefore Aconvenient location is chosen as the pouring station and as soon as onemold is filled, the table is rotated to bring another mold up to thepouring station. The table is stopped while each mold is being poured.

After three or four molds have been poured, the first casting is usuallycool enough for dumping and this operation is performed by an operatorstationed in the proper location who lifts the plunger 3'1, turns itfree of the mold, grasps handle 29 and tilts bucket 21 outwardly throughan angle sumcient to cause the casting to fall out of the mold bygravity. If any sticking occurs, it can usually be overcome by swingingthe bucket back so that lug 3| strikes stop 30 a sharp blow. Thisjarring action loosens the casting so that it falls out readily when thebucket is again swung outwardly. In the case of rolling-mill plugs, thesymmetrical tapered shape of the castings facilitates their removal fromthe molds.

The water is turned on and an inthe limiting factor in output.

Another operator then places new cores in the molds and secures them inplace by means of the plungers 3'! and new wood blocks 39. These moldsare then ready to receive molten metal for additional castings and theprocess may be continued as long as a supply of molten metal isavailable.

It is possible to set up different sizes of molds in the several bucketsat one time. In this case, however, the output is limited by the pouringtime on the largest casting.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that my invention providescasting apparatus having peculiar advantages for the production of smallarticles suited for casting in one-piece metal molds. The constructionis simple and inexpensive yet rugged and sturdy enough to withstand aconsiderable degree of rough usage. Progressive rotation of the tablebrings the molds successively up to the pouring station so that thecasting may proceed with little interruption. The provisions for watercooling eifect prompt solidification and cooling of the castings so theymay be quickly dumped and the molds fitted with new cores for the nextcycle. The apparatus is quite flexible in that the pouring, dumping andcorefitting stations may be located where desired around the peripheryof the table, so long as they are properly spaced and in correctsequence.

Although I have disclosed herein the referred embodiment of myinvention, I intend to cover as well any change or modification thereinwhich may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

I claim:

Casting apparatus comprising a base, a vertical tubular post upstandingon said base, open at the top, a hub telescoped over said post,vertically spaced bearings on said post rotatably supporting said hubthereon, a plurality of horizontal arms spaced circumferentially of thehub and extend ing radially therefrom, a pair of fixed bearings mountedon the outer end of each arm, the adjacent bearings of each pair ofadjacent arms being spaced apart, a mold-carrying bucket pivoted in saidadjacent bearings and depending therebetween, an open-topped collectorbasin fitting in the top of said hub and having a bottom outletdischarging into said post, an annulus lying in a horizontal plane abovesaid basin, an inlet pipe extending upwardly through said post andconnected to said annulus, supply pipes extending radially outward fromsaid annulus and radial return pipes extending inwardly and upwardlyabove the top of the basin and discharging thereinto over the rimthereof whereby the flow from said return pipes is readily visible, oneof the supply pipes and one of the return pipes being connected to eachbucket through the two bearings, respectively, supporting each bucket.

STANLEY N. LUTZ,

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Shooket al. 1 Sept. 12, 1950

